1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a microelectromechanical device with signal routing through a protective cap and to a method of controlling the microelectromechanical device.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is known, the use of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) has encountered an ever-increasing spread in various sectors of technology and has yielded encouraging results especially in the production of inertial sensors, microintegrated gyroscopes, and electromechanical oscillators for a wide range of applications.
Under the thrust of the increasing request for high performance and flexibility of use, the technology has rapidly developed and has led to the production of miniaturized microelectromechanical sensors capable of detecting different independent quantities. For example, numerous solutions have been proposed regarding multiaxial movement sensors (accelerometers and gyroscopes) using microstructures integrated in a single die.
The trend towards miniaturization and to integration has encountered, however, a limit in the need to enable communication of the sensors integrated in the die with the external environment, in particular with the control devices that are typically obtained in separate dice. An important part of the die integrating the microstructures, in fact, is dedicated exclusively to accommodating contact pads for connection with the outside world. Paradoxically, whilst sophisticated solutions from the mechanical and electrical standpoint enable design of extremely compact microstructures, the area used by the pads and by the corresponding connection lines cannot be reduced beyond a certain limit.
Integrated sensors capable of detecting several independent quantities hence use a considerable expenditure in terms of area.
In addition to the technical difficulties to be tackled for design of the connections, the yield per unit area is low, and the cost of the device is high.